Toy parachute



May 26, 1970 w. c. HANSEN TOY PARACHUTE Filed March 17, 1967 IN VENTOR. WQODROW C. 1 /14/735 BY Arm/ME) United States Patent O 3,513,591 TOY PARACHUTE Woodrow C. Hansen, 2819 Lucena Drive, San Jose, Calif. 95132 Continuation-impart of application Ser. No. 550,345, May 16, 1966. This application Mar. 17, 1967, Ser. No. 623,888

Int. Cl. A63h 33/20 U.S. Cl. 46-86 4 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Resilient shroud lines maintain a sheet in an extended position to form a toy parachute which is connected to a kite guide line by a separable link. A friction grip joint holds one link section to another link section as the parachute is carried aloft by the wind and the link sections separate when the pull of the wind overcomes the friction grip.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application is a continuation-in-part of my copending application Ser. No. 550,345, filed May 16, 1966, now Pat. No. 3,332,645.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the invention Kite accessories is the broad field of art to which this invention pertains and more specifically involves a toy parachute linked to a kite guide line, for ascent with the wind to an altitude near the kite, where it separates from the line for descent to the earth.

Description of the prior art Several types of parachutes are known which act as a sail to ascend a kite guide line and upon reaching an elevation near the kite are diverted from the line for descent to the earth. .Difiiculties have been experienced with these parachutes when the shroud lines become entangled, preventing the parachute from opening. Another common problem is positive releasing of the parachute wlien it has reached the desired release point on the line. Hooks, pulley wheels and slide travelers have been used which tend to increase the parachutes weight and cost of manufacture.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Resilient pasteboard shroud lines maintain a light paper sheet in an extended position to receive wind as a parachute or sail. A separable link having a friction grip connects the shroud lines to :kite guide line and is adapted to separate when the pull of the wind overcomes the friction of the grip.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIG. 1 is a plan view of a parachute and link in assembled form embodying the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of a blank from which a second link section is assembled to link the parachute shown in FIG. 1 to a kite guide line as shown in FIG. 3.

FIG. 3 is a schematic view illustrating the application of a toy parachute embodying the present invention as it is used on a kite guide line.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view upon separation of a parachute and first link section from a second link section.

FIG. 5 is a side elevation view of a modified form of second link section.

FIG. 6 is a side elevation view of a second modified form of second link section.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Looking first at FIG. 1, a toy parachute 10 is shown to include a sheet 12 of substantially square shape made of pliable wind resistant material, such as a light paper napkin or towel. Shroud lines 14 and 16 extend diagonally between opposite corners of the sheet and are made of heavy paper or pasteboard. The relative stiffness of the shroud lines with respect to the sheet tends to maintain the sheet in an extended position to receive wind. These shroud lines overlap at their respective mid-points and interlock with shroud line 14 passing through a pair of slits defining an interlocking panel 18 within shroud line 1-6. The shroud lines are threaded through an eye 20 at one end of a first link section 22 for connection therewith. Theends of the shroud lines are then glued to the respective sheet corners which overlap thereon, so that the sheet is maintained in an extended substantially flat position and the lines are slightly bowed. Glue can be applied at the time of fastening the corners of the sheet to the ends of the line or an adhesive coating can be placedon the ends prior to assembly enabling rapid attachment. The first link section can include a retainer flap 24 that is joined thereto along fold line 26 at the end thereof opposite the eye.

A second link section blank 28 is shown in FIG. 2 having a linking panel 30 defined by the portion of the blank to the left of fold line 32. An opening 34 is provided near the outerend and slot 36 extends from the edge of the panel to the opening enabling insertion of a kite guide line therein. A first grip panel 38 is connected to the linking panel along fold line 32 and extends to the fold line 40 where a second grip panel 42 is connected. The second grip panel extends to fold line 44 where flap 46 is joined thereto. The second link section is assembled as shown in FIG. 4 by doubling the first grip panel back over the linking panel along fold line 32 and then folding the second grip panel forward along fold line 40. The grip panels are resiliently held in this position by a rubber band 48 which is fitted thereabout. First link section 22 can be inserted bet-ween grip panels 38 and 42 so as to be held in place by friction.

Retainer flap 24, connected to the first link section 22, and flap 46 of the second link section 28 are optional for the purpose of carrying articles such as a paper glider 50 (see FIG. 3) aloft. The nose of the paper glider is inserted between the retainer flap and the first link section, which is then inserted between the grip panels. Rap 46 is then bent along fold line 44 to contact the first link section. Thus, the nose of the glider is held in place while the toy parachute 10 is carried aloft.

In operation, the toy parachute 10 and second link section 28 are assembled as previously described, and if desired, a paper glider 50 may be inserted between retainer flap 24 and the first link section 22. The second link sec tion 28 is then fitted upon a guide line 52, as shown in FIG. 3, which is connected to a kite 54. The guide line slips through slot 36 of the second link section and into opening 34 so that the second link section is free to travel along the guide line in the direction of arrow 56. As the sheet 12 of the parachute fills with air, the force of the wind causes it to move up the guide line 52 until an obstruction 58 prevents the second link section from further travel along the line. Since the second link section is thereby restrained, the pull on the link sections is in creased, tending to cause the first link section to separate from the second link section. If the link sections do not separate, by giving a sharp tug on the guide line, a greater pull will be transmitted thereto. This will cause the link sections to separate and allow the toy parachute and paper glide to descend, as shown in phantom line in FIG. 3, to the earth.

A modified second link section 60 is shown in FIG. 5. Line opening 64 is provided at one end of the link section and has an entrance slot 66 in communication therewith. A series of openings 68, 70, 72 and 74 are provided so that the first link section 22 may be threaded therethrough. Friction between the first and second link sections tend to hold the sections in place and when this friction is overcome, the sections will separate. By increasing the number of openings through which the first link section is threaded, the friction resistance is increased. The friction resistance can also be increased by narrowing the size of openings '68, 7 0, 72 and 74. A slit 76 is provided for carrying articles aloft, such as the paper glider shown in FIG. 3. A hole is punched in the nose of the glider and it is fitted through the slit. The first link section locks the glider in place by fitting through the hole in the nose. The second link section 60 is then fitted upon the guide line and carried aloft as previously described, and when the pull on the parachute causes the first link section to separate from the second link section, the glider is released to descend, as is the parachute.

A second modified second link section 78 is illustrated in FIG. 6. Opening 80 is punched in one end of the link section and an entrance slot 82 is provided for insertion of a guide line. At the opposite end of the link section, a series of slits 84, 86, and 88 are provided to receive the first link section 22 which is threaded therethrough. Similarly, a second series of slits 90, 92, and 94 are provided to receive a first link section 22A and a third series of slits 96, 98, and 100 are provided to receive a first link section. Thus, a multiplicity of first link sections can be carried by one single second link section so as to launch several parachutes.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to protect by Letters Patent is 1. A toy parachute comprising:

a pliable sheet of wind restraining material,

a plurality of shroud lines extending diagonally of the sheet and being made of resilient material having a relative stiffness greater than the sheet whereby the sheet is maintained in an extended position to receive wind,

a first link section connected to the shroud lines, and

a second link section adapted to travel along a guide line,

said first and second link sections being made from pasteboard blanks and joinable with each other by a friction engagement sufficient to withstand the wind force while the parachute is climbing the guide line but insufficient to hold the parachute when the second link is restrained from travel along the guide line.

2. A toy parachute as described in claim 1, wherein said second link section includes a linking panel with a slotted opening at one end to receive the guide line, a first grip panel foldably connected to the end of the linking panel opposite from the slotted opening, a second grip panel foldably connected to the first grip panel, said first 'grip panel being doubled back against the linking panel and said second grip panel being doubled back against the first grip panel forming a pocket therebetween to receive the first link section, and resilient means for maintaining said grip panels in folded position.

3. A toy parachute as described in claim 2, wherein said first link section includes a retainer flap foldably connected thereto and insertable within the pocket between the first and second grip panels, said retainer flap being doubled back over the first link section to hook about an article to be carried aloft with the parachute, whereby upon separation of the first link section from the second link section, said retainer flap withdraws the article from between the first and second grip panels and thereafter the article is released.

4. A toy parachute as described in claim 1, wherein the second link section has a series of openings therein, said first link section being threadably fitted through the series of openings whereby said links are held in friction engagement.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,432,962 3/1969 Boese 4686 1,579,531 4/1926 Hempel 4686 2,463,201 3/ 1949 Prentice 244l 3,088,701 5/1963 Fricke 4686 X ROBERT PESHOCK, Primary Examiner 

